Joe has a clear goal for himself.
His interests and talent with computers at an early age
helped him set his goal of working toward a computer networking degree
To make that dream a reality, he has enrolled in postsecondary education classes
at a technical college
and is working two jobs to gain experience, learn new skills
and earn income.
Hi my name is Joe.
Employment is important to me
so that I can earn my own money and connect with more people.
The jobs that I have right now
is working at a small gift shop in Waconia called Sam & Friends.
And I also work at Target.
I found my job at Sam & Friends
through my friends.
And my job at Target
I interviewed for that job.
My responsibilities at Sam & Friends are to stock items
inventory items and scan people's items.
The responsibilities I have at Target are working the checkout lane
and to watch self-checkout
so someone doesn’t steal any items.
I am going to school right now at Hennepen Tech in Eden Prarie.
Right now all classes are online but I hope to get in person soon.
The classes I'm taking at Hennipen Tech are technical writing and a computer class
which involves working in Microsoft Word PowerPoint and Excel.
I had an interest in computers ever since I was little
with helping my family members with their computer issues.
When I realized I wanted to work with computers for a job
my next steps were registering
for college classes at Hennepin Tech
and seeing how classes go.
The skills you need and education you need to do
computer networking is a diploma certificate
and you have to be able to be self-sufficient
be on time
and work together.
When I was in high school, VRS helped me
explore class options and job opportunities.
My job coach helped me with the online application
and prepped me for my interview
and I went to my interview by myself.
The advice I would give to a high schooler who's being introduced to VRS for the first time
is it's a good program
and it'll help you get a job eventually
like it helped me get a job.
The accommodations I need at Hennepin Tech
are for someone to read the tests and quizzes to me
and extra time on the tests and quizzes.
The accommodations I need now at Target is if I get trained in a new area
to allow extra time to make me feel confident that I'm doing the job right.
When I have a big and important decision to make
I talk to my county counselor
and my parents.
Independence to me
means that you can go
to work independently
and you can go visit friends and do activities by yourself.
I am preparing to move into my apartment
by paying for rent and utilities and also learning cooking skills
and budgeting and skills with my independent living services.
When I turned 18 there were discussions on guardianship
or power of attorney
and I chose power of attorney.
I chose power of attorney because I feel like I could make some decisions on my own.
But I felt like I could have
a little help with health care and making appointments
and so that my parents could hear what the doctors say.
I feel supported
when advocating for myself.
When I advocate for myself my parents support me
and whoever I'm talking to supports me.
In school I had to advocate for myself
to make sure I was getting all my accommodations I needed.
I had to advocate for myself at Target
to get more hours because I wasn't getting enough hours.
I do feel like my disability will be a benefit to my future job.
the benefits I think would be approaching problems
and I just think differently than other people may.
There are many ways to go about finding work.
Joe found one of his two jobs by networking with friends
and the other by interviewing well with his new employer.
He credits the guidance and support the professionals in his network
and the waiver program for his early success
on the road to a career and living independently.
If you're eligible for medical assistance, a home and community based service waiver
can help you pay for the services
you need to live at home or in the community.
The services that medical assistance offers to help you live in a community
are where waivers come in.
A waiver helps you get services wherever you choose to live.
Joe also feels comfortable advocating for himself
and has negotiated accommodations both at school and on the job.
He feels that he thinks differently because of his disability
and shows that to both his peers and his supervisors.